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Sep 15, 2010

No, that's not a sentinel hanging from this family's ceiling. It's one hundred petri dishes attached to 15,000 feet of fiber optics, perhaps pausing for a moment before reaching down to strike at those dining below?

Bacterioptica, as the chandelier is named, is designed to be a growing, changing household organism. By interchanging different sized petri dishes, adjusting the lighting intensity, and altering stem and arm lengths, the chandelier can be reconfigured infinitely many ways. If you look closely, you can see how it would make a kick-ass Alien. Or maybe I'm just projecting.

Sep 14, 2010

What, pray tell, is this? It's Dell's new Inspiron Duo, a 10" tablet that opens up and twirls its screen to transform itself into a netbook. Craziest of all? They're saying it'll be available before the end of the year.

Dell showed off the crazy little guy, which runs Windows 7 Premium and packs a dual-core Atom N550 processor, at the second day keynote of Intel's IDF conference. There's no word if they've made any concessions to make its version of Windows 7 more tablet friendly, but this Inspiron gets kudos for audacity alone.

This is probably just unfounded gossip, but Bloomberg is reporting on a story about Steve Jobs getting stopped at the Kansai International Airport last July, after security found ninja stars in his carry-on luggage. And boy he got pissed-off.

This is where I tell you that he took out his Hattori Hanzō sword and killed everyone in the airport lobby, running away with the shurikens in his Quinjet. But according to Bloomberg's translation of Japanese SPA! magazine, this is what happened:

Jobs said it wouldn't make sense for a person to try to hijack his own plane, according to the report. He then told officials he would never visit Japan again, the magazine reported.

Bloomberg claims that a Kansai Airport's spokesman confirmed the episode... but he wouldn't reveal the name of the passenger involved in the incident. The spokesman said the private jet passenger trashed the shuriken at the security point, but declined to disclose his name because of the airport's privacy policy. Bloomberg also says that the airport doesn't have a separate boarding for private jet passengers, which explains why this unidentified man had to pass through the usual security point.

Apple declined to comment, which could mean two things: This rumor is so ridiculous that it doesn't need commentary or this rumor is so ridiculous that it doesn't need commentary. Or a third: It may be true. I want to believe it is. If any of you have any photos of Steve trashing his ninja stars at the security point, send them to me.

In any case, if any of us appear dead with a sai up our most tender parts, another rumor would be confirmed: Steve has been watching too many Teenage Mutant Turtles episodes on his Apple TV.

An early preview of The Social Network has had reviewers foaming at the mouth, with /Film's Peter Sciretta declaring it as his "favorite movie of the year (so far)." Yes, this is the film about Zuckerberg creating Facebook.

While it wasn't the final cut, the movie was screened for a few select publications, and casting a quick eye over their initial thoughts, this could very well turn out to be an award-winner.

Sciretta wrote that "after returning home from the screening, I was tempted to read the screenplay - that's how good it is."

The Sydney Morning Herald was equally complimentary. "This is an astounding film about one of the most important seismic shifts in communication in the modern age, and the way innovation and ethics are not often related."

Acknowledging that the content could scare people off with visions of coding and typeface arguments, Cinematical said in their preview that "with The Social Network, director David Fincher and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin turn some fairly dry, nerdy content about fairly dry, nerdy characters into one of the must-see films of the year, and they don't waste any time getting right to it."

Sep 13, 2010

Sci-Fi author Rudy Rucker is one of the folks behind the cleverest wireless ISP serving San Francisco. He and his team have set up a system to provide customers with reliable 10-30Mbps download speeds for a mere $40 per month.

Sure, you could get theoretical speeds of about "20 Mbps down and 4 Mbps up from Comcast for $55 per month," but the service provided by Rucker's company, MonkeyBrains, is providing reliable and consistent speeds:

MonkeyBrains guarantees at least 10 Mbps symmetrical and most customers see 15-20 Mbps. Some customers see 25-30 Mbps with a good connection. According to [a company employee], this depends on the company's backhaul connection, which is in the process of being upgraded. Once that happens, he expects 30 Mbps+ connections will be common.

There are initial startup costs associated with the service—it costs about $250 to install the required antenna—but MonkeyBrains appears to be offering customers several free months of service to compensate for that cost.

The company is still small: It has "about 100 antennas, each of which may serve one or many customers—an average of 5-10 per antenna"—but it certainly appears to be off to a good start. Of course, the downside of a company like MonkeyBrains is that it provides such great—and cheap—service because it's sticking to a small area and focusing on those customers. This means that those of us who live outside of San Francisco are left hoping that someone will think to run a small WISP with a silly name in our areas too.

Rumors of the Zune HD2, a next-gen entertainment device that would run Windows Phone 7's spiffy Xbox Live games, have been kicking around for months. But a new Microsoft job listing suggests that now it's actually in the works.

The listing, which was dug up by WMPoweruser, calls for a mechanical engineer to help build "the next generation of portable entertainment and communication devices" for Microsoft's Portable Entertainment Group.

Though there's still no saying exactly what form the device might take—it could be a radical departure from the Zune HD, maybe a gaming-centric device or a Microsoft phone—what seems likeliest is a next-gen Zune that's part of the Windows Phone 7 family, an iPod Touch-competitor that would help Microsoft gain much-needed footing for their promising but late-to-the-game platform.

Over at ZDNet, Mary-Jo Foley's Microsoft tipsters have told her that the device would come in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB varieties sometime next year, but it wouldn't be surprising if Microsoft started drumming up excitement for a WP7-running, next-gen Zune amidst the Windows Phone 7 launch next month.

On September 13, 1985, Super Mario Bros. was released in Japan, meaning the world's most famous plumber's most famous game is now 25 years old. Happy birthday!

It seems almost pointless marking the occasion with a round-up, or a few paragraphs outlining his importance to video games - and video gamers - because it's Mario. He isn't important to video games. He is video games.

Whether appearing in his own flagship games or in spin-off titles where he plays basketball or becomes a paper airplane, Nintendo's mascot has been the most recognisable (and profitable) face this industry has ever - and will likely ever - see, almost single-handedly driving Nintendo through five whole generations of video game success.

He is the most recognisable face in gaming. His games are some of the highest-selling, and most critically-acclaimed of all time. And while other companies and characters either disappear into the history books or undergo awkward changes as they cling to relevance, Mario remains almost exactly the same. Still wearing redoveralls, still with that goofy moustache, still risking life and limb to rescue the same, careless Princess.

And what started it all? Sure, he was in Donkey Kong in 1981, but he didn't have a name. Sure, there was Mario Bros. in 1983, but it was the Famicom (and NES) edition of Super Mario Bros. that made him. Heck, many people - myself included - would probably say that of all of Mario's core games, Super Mario Bros. was perhaps their favourite. It's definitely the most iconic.

So here's to you, Super Mario Bros. Others will pay their dues over the course of the day, I'm sure, so let me just say...happy birthday. And may your next 25 years be as successful and enjoyable for us all as your first.

Sep 12, 2010

One things for sure: putting your iPhone 4 inside a Canon SLR isn't as useful as adding a SLR lens to your iPhone. But with this custom-made getup, you won't think about dropping your iPhone every time you hold it up.

Sep 11, 2010

Are iPhone owners more willing to pay for applications than Android owners? Or are Android developers just more interested in giving away their apps?

Something's going on with these two app markets which have completely different make ups, according to Royal Pingdom. Pingdom surveyed the App Store and the Android Market and discovered that only 30% of the apps in Apple's store are free, while 65% of the apps in the Android Market are free.

Why the disparity? Pingdom speculates that maybe more Google developers are just hobbyists or tinkers who can get their app in store because they don't have to deal with Apple's gate keepers. Another important factor, Google only supports paid apps in 13 countries.

It's also much easier to install pirated software on Android phones than it is Apple phones. So perhaps this pushes down sales.

Sep 10, 2010

These people work at Microsoft. To celebrate the release to manufacturing of Windows Phone 7—which means it's now market-ready—they took the streets carrying a dead giant iPhone and BlackBerry, followed by a parade. And they danced Thriller.

The parade of employees in costume featured all kinds of zombies, clowns, and women in pink and/or transvestites:

It all looked like a lot fun until the naked angel in the jacuzzi showed up:

Then it got even funnier.

Apart from adding naked valkyrias riding on unicorns, I personally can't think of any better way to begin a new mobile era at Redmond. That said, congratulations are in order to all Microsoft workers! You officially have embarrassed and freaked us all at the same time. For sure, now we are definitely going to ditch our iPhones and BlackBerries to get your new cellphone.

Employing the usual "cords and devices just completely all over the place" method works for some people (like me), but those looking for more order on their desks will dig this dock. Charging, syncing, and storage on one minimalist platform

The concept is designed with solely Apple products in mind—I'm sure those of you with Android devices might appreciate a similar setup.

Once upon a time, Steve Jobs carved a tablet out of magic wood. The tablet became alive and wished it was a boy. It met a cricket, lied a lot, and fooled around with whales until Jobs lost his patience.

So he chopped it to bits. Then he asked the magic elves with squinting eyes to make him a bunch of these magic tablets, which he sold for $500 a pop.

This, my friends, is a copy of the original Steve Jobs Magic Tablet. It's not made out of magic wood, but it has the icon of a sausage and a pill, ok? Don't ask for magic for only $19. It's called the myBrett cutting board.

Sep 9, 2010

Everyone knew it the moment they saw it. Hell, even Steve Jobs alluded to it when he was unveiling the thing. The new multitouch iPod Nano was made to be strapped to a watch band. Here it is, for $17.

OK, so there's still the issue of having headphones plugged into your watch at all times. And the limits of the Nano's looks-like-iOS-but-can't-run-apps-like-iOS operating system. But these things are pretty minor when you consider that this time next week you could be wearing an IPOD as a WATCH. Imagine the look on your 2001 self's face if you told them that in under a decade you'd be wearing one of those iPod things on your wrist. It'd be a look of incredulity. And longing!

The 22mm Maratac Nylon band slips through the Nano's clip and is available in a variety of colors, to make sure you're all nice and coordinated. Just think: "Oh excuse me, what time is it?" "Hold on...let me check my iPod." "No, you must've misheard me because of those earbuds you have in your ears—I didn't ask what song you were listening to, I asked what time it was!" "I know." Go buy one already lol!

We've all succumbed to the siren song of luxury—splurged on a pricey gadget we have no legitimate need or use for. Frequently, such decisions are wrapped up in authenticity. Other times all it takes is one sexy material.

You know what I'm talking about, Mr. Carbon Fiber Chopsticks.

Fact: Few materials can instill lust in a gadget geek's heart like carbon fiber. Okay, those geek hearts primarily reside in males. But still, this composite tends to exert a bewitching hold over all who gaze upon it. And seeing it in action only increases one's ardor. While it doesn't handle sudden impacts or shocks very well, carbon fiber is the reinforced super reed that'll bend but never break. There's only one problem: For nearly all of us, carbon fiber is not only impractical, it's downright unnecessary.

Which is part of what makes its prevalence in the gadget realm today so puzzling.

How is it that such a specialized material evolved into one of the most fetishized synthetic fibers in the gadget world? Is there some inherent quality that makes it utterly irresistible when slathered on top of dashboards or infused into iPad cases? And seriously, why would someone make a carbon fiber refrigerator?

Mere hours after iOS 4.1became available, an iPhone Dev-Team user Pod2g found a bootrom exploit, meaning that the new update is indeed jailbreakable. However, this one differs—and could cause Apple a lot of pain.

Due to the way the jailbreak accesses the OS, the only way Apple can fix it is reportedly by installing a "whole new processor rev," according to someone from inside the project who spoke to Boy Genius Report.

There was some confusion yesterday when the jailbreak first came to light, as the initial tweet from Pod2g said it was for 4.0.1, but actually it was for 4.1, as confirmed by the same tweeter and RedmondPie.

As to when you can jailbreak it, well the Dev-Team guys are still working on it, but have said that people would be better off ignoring the 4.1 update for now.

The same exploit is also said to be working on iPads and fourth-gen iPod Touches.

Sep 8, 2010

Google's just announced Google Instant! They say it's going to transform search forever—making it faster, better, stronger. But what is it, exactly? It's predictive search...

Should you activate Google Instant Search, you'll start seeing search results as soon as you start typing. You'll also be shown a range of possible queries in grey to refine your options, all before you ever hit the "Search" button.

Google estimates that Google Instant will save people an average of 2-5 seconds per search. The reason? We read faster than we type, and predictive search pretty much takes typing out of the equation. If every Google user around the world switched to Instant, we'd save 3.5 billion seconds a day, or 11 hours per second.

Unless you're looking for porn.
While the normal SafeSearch filters—like those used in Image searches—apply, Google Instant draws the line at "pornography, violence and hate speech." Which means that when you try to autocomplete a generic "porn" search, you're stuck with this:

There's a good chance you've already got Google Instant up and running, but if not, don't feel too left out; it's going to take a couple of days for the service to hit all Google users. And a bit longer than that to hit mobile—Google says that it's not available in the immediate future for phones, but that it should be coming in the next few months. Ditto for the search bar in your browser. In any case, if you don't like it you're not forced to use it; next to every search box will be a link that lets you turn Instant off or on as you please.

...and has at least one neat trick up its sleeve.

When Google Instant is activated, the right arrow key acts as the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button. Glad to see that a healthy sense of adventure has been maintained.

You could argue that the iPhone's biggest UI leap was turning the user's finger into a stylus. Now, with the PLX XWave headest, you can turn your BRAIN into the stylus. Or your finger? My head hurts already.

From what I can gather—and this is only from what I can gather—the PLX XWave is a sesnor-laden headset that plugs into your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad and lets you interact with apps simply by thinking. This promotional video shows a glowing orb appearing in the palms of users, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't actually happen when you're using it:

Here, according to the company's site, is what actually happens:

XWave, powered by NeuroSky eSense patented technologies, senses the faintest electrical impulses transmitted through your skull to the surface of your forehead and converts these analog signals into digital. With XWave, you will be able to detect attention and meditation levels, as well as train your mind to control things. Objects in a game can be controlled, lights in your living room can change color depending on your mood; the possibilities are limited to only the power of your imagination.

I'm not sure how they make the leap to controlling lights, and I definitely wouldn't say that the possibilities were only limited by one's imagination, but hey, it's MIND CONTROL, and that's always fun. PLX is even serving up their APIs so developers can make their own brain-controlled apps. Doodle Jumping with your brain—if that isn't the future than I don't know what is. You can order an XWave for $100; it ships on November 1.

Sep 7, 2010

Justin Bieber uses 3% of Twitter resources at any moment. According to a Twitter employee—talking to designer Dustin Curtis—Bieber has "racks of servers dedicated to him. I'm sure this will excite his haters even more.

Dustin confirmed to us that the tweet is not a joke, but it was told to him by the Twitter employee. Since Bieber is almost a perennial trending topic, I'm not surprised. Still, and given the 180 million unique visitors every month, that's quite an achievement.

What is really important, however, is this: Now, every time that whale pops, you will have one more reason to slap him. Also Justin Bieber is banned from Twitter's trending topics.

Last week Steve Jobs patted Apple on the back and announced that 120 million iOS devices have now been sold, but according to market research company Asymco, the iPod Touchaccounts for 38 per cent of that figure.

How did Asymco arrive at that figure? It's guesswork, but they subracted the 59.6 million iPhones sold up to the end of the month of June (known because of SEC filings), and the 3.2 million iPads sold. They then figured that around 8 million iPhones and 4 million iPads were sold by Apple between July and August, resulting in 45.2 million unexplained iOS sales—which have been fingered as iPod Touch sales, and 37.7 per cent of that figure Jobs boasted of.

We do know that the iPod Touch is Apple's most successful iPod to date, having taken over from the iPod Nano, but Jobs' claim that "the iPod touch outsells Nintendo and Sony portable game players combined. It's been amazing" isn't looking quite so accurate after casting your eye over PSP and DS sales.

Sep 6, 2010

"Want to star alongside Pam in a short film?" is the question Nokia's asking, as part of its promotional campaign for its forthcoming N8 smartphone. Pam's perhaps not the unstoppable sex machine she once was, but... yes please.

A short film, entitled The Commuters, will be shot in London on September 20 using the Nokia N8 to shoot entirely using the phone's HD video capabilities. The stars are Pamela Anderson, Gossip Girl's Ed Westwick and possibly you, if you want. To be in with a chance of getting in the film/commercial, all you have to do is "like" Nokia's UK Facebook profile.

With entry requirements that low, even Lindsay Lohan might be able to resurrect her acting career.

Sep 5, 2010

Did you know the one of the horse who goes into the Apple Store? For those who thought this was a Photoshop, reader Chris Laseter sent us a close up.

Yes, that looks like a horse's ass indeed. The little pony is real too. Chris tells us more about it: "It is a one-to-one customer's horse that visits the store on the regular. He even rides in the front seat of the woman's van."

Sep 4, 2010

Whenever I use sticky tape, I find myself struggling to figure where it begins—mostly because I don't use tape dispensers or mark the ends—but my struggle might be over thanks to this new tape concept.
The V-Tape concept design is pretty basic. It's just a plain ol' roll of tape with a little v-shaped cut along one edge. Thanks to that cut, you'll tear off the tape in the same spot each time and know where to find the end.

The downside of the design is that you'll always have to use specific lengths of tape.

Sep 3, 2010

That's what he said to designer Joshua Kopac when he told him that the iTunes 10 logo "really" sucks. No, not "prepare to die". I mean "We disagree."

Kopac:

Steve,

Enjoyed the presentation today. But…this new iTunes logo really sucks. You're taking 10+ years of instant product recognition and replacing it with an unknown. Let's both cross our fingers on this…

Jobs:

We disagree.

Sent from my iPhone

Well, I must admit that I completely agree with Steve Jobs and disagree with Joshua Kopac. The iTunes 10 icon doesn't "suck" and this is not about brand recognition. The iTunes 10 icon is an inane, insipid piece of shiny bore that one of the designers for Windows Vista vomited after having an orgy of sex and tropical cocktails with a stock clipart rep back in 1994. Someone found it fossilized in a dumpster, polished it, and then shoved it inside the resources folder of that bloated piece of software that some people call iTunes and I call iTurd.

A collection of new images of the R2-D2 skinned special edition Droid 2 have been unlocked on Verizon's advertorial web site, showing the phone in much more detail—and revealing this rather nice themed dock.

There's a cool etched circuit board effect beneath the space where the Droid 2 sits, plus the back of the dock has the Star Wars logo on it, just in case you don't get the amazingly obvious reference. Isn't it nice to see Android accessories in white for once?

It's party time for Sony, as the planets of consumerism aligned to earn it a rare win over Apple's iPod music-playing range. It's the first time Walkman has outsold Apple's music players in the region since iPod arrived in 2001.

Sony had to make a few sacrifices in order to win back musical market share, though, aggressively under-cutting the price of its rival. Also, according to analyst Eiji Mori, the month's drop in iPod sales has been partly brought about thanks to buyers waiting for Apple's newest ranges to hit the country.

Sep 2, 2010

Inductive chargers have been kicking around for a while now, but Energizer's new charging platter is the first to utilize Qi technology—the new universal standard for inductive charging. That's one small step closer to total freedom from cables.

Qi, which was recently approved as the inductive standard by the Wireless Power Consortium, will allow any Qi-equipped gadget that requires less than 5 Watts to power up on any Qi charging surface. Energizer's new charger is the first to support the new standard, but eventually the idea is that you'll be able to toss your phone or MP3 player on a charging station at your friends' house, even one made by a different manufacturer, and they'll just work, no fuss.

Energizer's charging station is launching with a Qi sleeve for the iPhone 3GS and a replacement Qi battery for the Blackberry Curve 8900, though before long, Energizer's hoping, manufacturers will start building Qi right into the gadgets themselves. Then we'll really be cooking with this whole wireless charging thing.

The Qi-ready Inductive Charger will be available in October for $89; the cases for the iPhone 3GS and Curve 8900 will run $34.99 each.

In a silly survey conducted by Coupons.com, they've discovered some ridiculous "revelations" about iPhone users and Android users. By analyzing both platform's coupon usage, they've determined that iPhone users are "feminine-smelling, chicken-eating, entertainment-reading fish owners." As for Android users:

Android users are "manly-scented, pork-eating, news-reading, bird lovers." Well, I guess that clears things up, if you read the news and eat pork you're Android all the way. But I wonder where I fall, I'm a scent-less, beef-eating, everything-but-fiction reading, no pet-having person. Is that Blackberry?

Sep 1, 2010

Apple's music event was so full of shiny gadgets and awesome news that your head might still be spinning. In case you struggled to keep up with everything or want a review, here are all the highlights:

Netflix on Apple TV May Finally Make It a Success

Among many other new features, Apple is including Netflix support straight into their new Apple TV. At last, they are getting the message: It's not all about their iTunes store. Good.

The New Apple TV
Apple has revealed its streaming-only new Apple TV, successor to the oft-maligned original. And it's just 1/4 the size of the old one. The new version will pack built-in power supply, HDMI, ethernet, and 802.11n wireless, priced down to $99.

The Complete Guide to the New iPod Touch
The new iPod touch is like an iPhone 4, without the phone part. Even thinner than the original, has a 326ppi Retina display, Apple A4 processor, gyroscope, and a digital camera, both on the back and for FaceTime. Updating live.

Dear iPod Classic, RIP
The new iPod lineup has been announced-fresh and awesome new nanos, touches and shuffles-but nary a word about the iPod classic. Goodbye, old friend. It was your time. Update: It is still for sale, though, $250 for 160GB.

The New Multitouch iPod NanoThe new iPod Nano hardly bigger than an oversized stamp. It does away with the click wheel (and all things video) in favor of a multitouch screen. But how do you use it?

iOS 4.2 Adds AirPlay Wireless Music and Video Streaming fromiTunes (and Comes to iPad!) iPad with iOS 4.2 is almost everything we've wanted in the iPad since getting an iPhone 4, plus something we've wanted from the beginning: streaming music and video from iTunes to iOS devices with AirPlay. It's coming out in November.

What iOS 4.1 Does For You
Apple will release a new version of iOS4, adding a fix for proximity sensor issues, HDR photos, and long-awaited Game Center support. The 4.1 update will be available next week for iPhone and iPod touch (though not all models).

Seemingly, Smart TV is a rebrand of LG's NetCast system—an internet-connected TV service with a home dashboard, displaying apps and widgets. Considering NetCast offered Skype, YouTube, Netflix, VUDU, and Yahoo Widgets, we shall expect more of the same.

Smart TV will be launching in early 2011, but there's already a peripheral available today that will be able to support it—the Magic Wand remote, which we saw back at CES. LG described it then as "mirroring a "Wii-like" experience," and by the looks of LG's press release (below), it sounds like they intend on stepping on even more of Nintendo's turf. Would you use the remote to color in a coloring book, or show you yoga positions? Maybe if you were too cheap to buy a Wii.

Aug 31, 2010

Apple has finally made their September event official, and it's coming sooner than many expected—the "special event" will be held September 1 in San Francisco, and from the look of things it's going to involve music.

The Apple-sound-hole-guitar suggests that Apple's music making products might get updates—perhaps new versions of Logic and Garage Band? I certainly wouldn't mind if they were overhauled to take advantage of the Magic Trackpad's multitouch goodness. Or how about Garage Band for the iPad? Hell, I'd just take some news on the iPad's jump to iOS 4.whatever.

And perhaps at this event we'll finally find out the answer to the mystifying question: Why on Earth did Lady Gaga visit the Apple offices? If Gaga and Steve Jobs appeared on stage together, the combined reality distortion would be so great that I'm not sure our planet would ever recover.

Aug 30, 2010

Aug 29, 2010

Aug 28, 2010

Ugly iPhone 4 Case Comes With Built-In Dual-SIM Adapter

This transparent iPhone 4 case doesn't exactly look great, but it comes with a clever feature: A dual-SIM adapter. It means that you can keep two SIM cards attached to your iPhone and toggle between them using a menu setting.
The adapter unfortunately doesn't allow both SIM cards to be active at the same time, but it's still a clever—albeit somewhat sloppy-looking—design. I'd just prefer the SIM cards to be hidden by an opaque case.

Aug 27, 2010

My Netflix Instant queue is long. Very, very long. And because I'm not a quitter, I'm determined to watch every last bit of it. Attacking it from my iPhone actually gives me a fighting chance.

Here's a confession: I don't own an iPad. So while the rest of you have been have been luxuriating in the Dexter back catalog since April on 9.7 inches of portable Netflix goodness, I've been eying my 3GS with a mixture of contempt and disappointment. But it was like getting mad at a goldfish for not learning how to roll over. Different beast, different skill set.

But to be honest, even if I had an iPad, I'd still need the Netflix app on the iPhone. Watching movies on the iPhone has never been ideal. The screen's a bit too small, the battery drain's often not worth it. But here's the thing: the movies on Watch Instantly aren't so hot anyway. Netflix gets consistently boned with delays, up to and including their deal with Paramount, Lionsgate, and MGM that kicks in next week. Short of the often random Starz selection and some worthy oldies, the movies are pretty much bunk.

But fact, the reason my queue is so backed up isn't movies at all. It's the season upon season of bygone TV shows loaded on there, that I either missed the first time around or miss today. Firefly. Black Adder. Fawlty Towers. The Riches. Dollhouse. I already mentioned Dexter, which my reliably informed parents insist is a must-watch. And for the small screen experience, my iPhone is perfect. To carry and to display the kind of fidelity I need for TV. And to grab bits of TV any time an opportunity presents itself. On the train, the bus, while waiting in line with a bag in one hand and a video playing in the other.

Here's how Netflix streaming works on my 3GS: silky smooth over Wi-Fi, gimped over 3G. And I'm way more relieved about the former than I am concerned about the latter. Streaming video over 3G has always been untenable; I'm just glad they even offer up the option. But the interface is easy, the video is clear and crisp enough to make dream of retina displays, and it played back the first five twenty minutes of Futurama: Bender's Game.

Can I fawn some more? I'd like to if you've got a minute. But not just about Netflix on the iPhone. That's just one slice of the pie. It's been on the iPad for months. It looks like it'll be gorgeous on Windows Phone 7. Android can't be far behind (right?). Then throw in WiMax and LTE speeds. Maybe a future in which studios embrace broad distribution instead of fight it—or Netflix pays up for earlier distribution rights, given how much money they save streaming rather than shipping. That's when we can watch whatever we want, whenever we want, wherever we want. That's the dream. And we're so close.

For now, though? I'm about to go on vacation for a week. And I'm going to spend a lot of it catching up with Mal Reynolds and Manuel and some serial killer my parents watch week after week. I'll won't have to pack anything more than my phone to do it. I couldn't do that yesterday.

Think about the last time you went swimming. Now think about what else you were doing the last time you went swimming. Nothing! Panicking, maybe. This waterproof Bluetooth headset from the boys at Brando brings multitasking into the deep end.

Whether you want to gab with your friends, orchestrate your next million dollar business deal, or just listen to the Little Mermaid soundtrack, you're only $57 away from adding Bluetooth to your backstroke. Specs:

IPx8 Certified to waterproof (3-metre/24-hours)
"Noise Rebound" technology makes clear talk
Touch Functionality through case surface
13 hours extra long talk and music time
Easy to detach and rotatble clip
Light reflective
Battery – 360mAh Li-polymer
A2DP / AVRCP / HF
Standy by 240-hours
Version 2.1 + EDR
Of course you could use it to listen to music while you were in the shower, too, but that'd be totally dorky.

Simply put, Apple wants fewer holes in its devices. Headphone jack—that's a hole. Microphone—that's a hole. According to a recent patent filing, Apple is looking to consolidate by combining the functionality of the two into one unified jack.

The patent argues that "in addition to using housing real estate, sound input apertures and electrical connectors introduce openings in the housing and breach the barrier that protects components inside the housing." So, fewer holes in the device itself, fewer ways for dust and other gunk to find their way inside. It also jibes completely with Apple's obsessively minimalist design ethos. Another potential perk of the two-in-one design would be enhanced voice quality, thanks to the addition of an extra noise-snuffing microphone—what Apple calls "audio beamforming."